


A Mother's Secrets

by mijxamania



Category: Roswell New Mexico (TV 2019)
Genre: Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Jesse Manes is His Own Warning, M/M, Malex, Secrets
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-02
Updated: 2020-05-02
Packaged: 2021-03-01 17:08:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,523
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23970571
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mijxamania/pseuds/mijxamania
Summary: When Alex’s brother let slip that their mother used to work at Caulfield when they were younger, Alex found a reason to reopen a wound he took years to close. It was even more unbelievable when he received a text saying she accepted to meet up with him – ‘a conversation long overdue’ she put. That’s how he found himself sitting at a café booth out of town, with Michael by his side looking at the woman who not only left him, but hid a big part of his childhood from him for decades.
Relationships: Michael Guerin/Alex Manes
Comments: 6
Kudos: 77





	A Mother's Secrets

**Author's Note:**

> I know this could have been written better. I haven't written anything in years, so I'm a little rusty and I always had difficulties with descriptive writing, so I apologize in advance. But this idea hasn't left my head in weeks and I needed to share it. Enjoy :)

Alex was waiting outside his house, anxiously checking his phone for nothing in particular, keeping his hands busy. He still couldn’t believe this was happening. He wasn’t sure how he should be feeling, really. Excitement, nervousness, anticipation – all these emotions where circulating his entire being. Should he just cancel?

That thought was cut short when the familiar truck pulled up. Somehow, Alex felt less unsure about this when his eyes met Michael’s as he got out of the truck and walked up to him. He gave him a knowing smile which was received back.

“So, you’re ready?” Michael asked. He locked eyes with Alex – looking for any signs of uncertainty in his reply. He didn’t find one.

“Yes, my mother owes me this much. And you – if she knew anything about your mother when she was at Caulfield, you deserve to know too.” He walked to the truck and made his way inside. Michael took a breath and followed. At first he wasn’t sure about this when Alex mentioned the idea of calling his mother and asking her to meet up with him, but Michael understood how important this was to Alex and after finally making things right between them, he was determined to follow Alex to the depths of Hell if he had too.

Michael sat in the driver’s seat, started the truck and drove off. He and Alex would lock eyes occasionally and Michael realized that Alex was getting agitated the closer they got to their destination. Alex was looking out of the window, focused on the song playing on the stereo when Michael grabbed his hand reassuringly and gave him a smile when Alex pressed them tighter.

“You okay?” Michael asked for the fifth time.

“Yeah, I’ll be better when we get there, I think,” Alex replied. “Thank you for coming with me. I know it’s hard for you to know about your mother’s past.”

Michael swallowed before answering, “True, but I want to know. Plus, I know it’s not going to be easy seeing your mother again after all this time. I wouldn’t want you to go through that alone.”

Michael saw the faint signs of tears welling up in Alex eyes in appreciation and lifted their joined hands to his lips and gave Alex’s hand a kiss. Alex kept his eyes locked on Michael’s, expressing his thanks through them in the most Alex way possible.

They remained with their hands gripped between them, enjoying to the music silently until they got to the café car park where Alex knew his mother waited for him inside.

Alex and Michael looked at each other – silently giving the other the strength to go in. Alex took a deep breath, opened the café door and looked around. He didn’t have to search for long, as a beautiful woman with long brown hair stood up from where she was sitting and called out Alex’s name. After noticing that Alex hadn’t moved for a few seconds, Michael placed a hand on the small of his back and gently guided Alex towards the woman.

The woman smiled at them, tears pooling in her eyes as she stared at Alex’s face. They stood there, at the edge of the booth for a moment, until the woman held her hands out to Alex, asking for a hug. After not getting the response she wanted from Alex, understandingly, she asked them if they’d like to have a seat. Michael and Alex sat down in the booth seat opposite of her and waited. The air became tense and Michael placed a hand on Alex’s thigh beneath the table, giving it a gentle squeeze. The woman gave Alex a nervous smile and for the first time since they met and then turned to Michael.

“Hi, erm…I’m Mi-”

“Michael, I know,” the woman finished, taking the hand Michael offered and shook it, giving him a generous smile.

This caught Alex’s attention and reminded him why he was here in the first place. He looked at his mother in silent question.

“I know, I know. I have a lot to answer. That’s why you’re here, right?” Alex gave a small nod. “Well then, ask away.”

Alex brought his hands to wrap around the hot coffee he ordered and felt the warmth in his fingers sooth him. “What do you remember about Caulfield- what do you remember of an alien in cell N39?” Michael looked up from his own cup of coffee towards the woman. She turned her head to the both of them and nodded.

“Well, I guess I’ll start from the beginning.” She took a sip of her drink, turned to Alex and began. “I had visited Caulfield occasionally when your brothers were young. Your father wanted you all to get familiar with his work; to ‘train you young,’ as he would put it. Your father didn’t keep Caulfield a secret from me – he couldn’t. I knew he was hiding something, but I didn’t know to what extent. Anyway, he wanted to involve the whole family in the business, but I demanded that I’d be there to keep an eye out for you boys, so he would ask me to clean around while he took your brothers around.” She turned to Michael, “that’s how I knew Nora.” 

**

_Alex’s mother was sweeping the prison floors as she usually does on on/off days during the week with a seven-year old Alex sitting down on the chair close to her, listening to a familiar song in the background. She would glance at him every few seconds, always aware of her youngest son. This was the first time Alex visited Caulfield, and he didn’t ask about his brothers or his father’s work. He wasn’t really interested, so he just enjoyed the time with his mother. His mother gave him a smile and continued her work. After coming home from his latest doctor’s appointment, his mother swore to never leave Alex out of her sight again._

_**_

“I used to clean the cell areas while your brothers followed your father around. I’m not sure why, but I was always attracted to that corridor, so I would take my time cleaning it. At first I was afraid, I must admit, but after a few months I got used to it. Each day your father’s crew would take random aliens to another room – I wasn’t given access to information about what happened behind the scenes, and I never dared to ask, but I observed.” She took another sip of her drink. “After a few months I noticed a pattern. They would take the aliens and when they returned, the aliens were different, more tired and weak – accept for one.” She turned to Michael; both men knew whom she was talking about. “She wouldn’t retaliate back, she couldn’t, but she didn’t let them faze her either. I would see her getting pushed back into her cell and instead of passing out like the other did, she would go to sit on her cot and sing.”

_**_

_She was almost ready from the sweeping when she saw Alex move off the chair. She followed his movements and held her breath as she saw him stop in front of a cell._

_“Alex, honey, what are you doing?” she asked him gently. Alex didn’t take notice of his mother’s words; instead he was transfixed on the woman in N39. The alien inside looked up as she noticed a new visitor by her door. Her eyes grew wider, but didn’t stop singing – her memories of her own little boy running through her head. His mother watched as Alex sat down in front of the cell and just listened. The alien, aware of this, sat up from her cot and made her way towards the door. Alex’s mother was about to yell at Alex to move away, before she noticed the prisoner sitting down herself, mirroring Alex on the other side. Alex smiled, and she smiled back. He remained there until it was time to leave._

_**_

“You were always fascinated by her when you visited, you would sit and listen to her sing all day – sometimes it felt as if you were communicating in your own silent language.” She laughed. Alex stopped stirring his coffee and caught his mother’s eyes.

“Wait, **I** knew about Caulfield?” Alex didn’t know what to think. Michael just stared at his boyfriend with the same disbelief and confusion.

His mother sighed in guilt, “Yes…” 

_**_

_It was from then on that Alex would beg his mother to let him visit Caulfield more often. His mother didn’t allow it at first, but after a few weeks of begging, his mother gave in to her son – she wanted Alex to live the tentative time he has left doing things he enjoyed. For weeks, Alex would sit by the cell door and wave a ‘hello’ to the woman inside. She would mouth it back and sit in her usual place and start to sing. This was their usual routine until his mother was done from her work. But one day, in the middle of a song, Alex felt himself staring more intently into the woman’s eyes and a sense of familiar fear enveloped him until he felt his muscles stiffen and lost consciousness._

_**_

“When you were young, you developed a tumor in your brain that caused you to seize.” She looked down at her thighs and closed her eyes at the memory. “And the older you grew; they became more frequent and grand.”

Alex just stared back with furrowed brows, “But how? I’m fine…”

** 

_The woman behind the door stopped her song and looked in horror at the boy convulsing in front of her. His mother ran to him and leaned over him gently without touching, tears straining down her cheeks. She was used to this, but it never got easier. Not knowing whether or not it would be Alex's last._

_She looked up towards the cell door when she saw the alien behind it bang on the door to get her attention. She looked and wiped the tears off her face. Through glazed eyes and heart beating in her ears, she swore she saw and heard a voice say 'open the door' as the prisoner frantically signed to the keypad by the cell door. After looking down at her son who was still convulsing violently, she hastily, but thoughtfully judged the woman's pleading eyes. What was she to do? Well, in nature, a mother’s instincts are heightened when her children are in danger. So, against her better judgment, she opened the door._

_She noticed the alien raise her arms slightly and moved Alex's body gently inside the cell without laying a hand on him. His mother followed cautiously, fully aware that this could have been a decision she may soon regret. But something in her mind told her that she could trust the alien. She stared on as the she moved closer to Alex and placed a gentle hand on his chest. His mother held her breath as she saw a warm glow warp around the alien’s hand and encompassed her son’s chest and soon her son's body goes limp and listened as his breathing regulate once more._

_"What happened to the boy?" Alex’s mother broke out of her thoughts at the question. She turned her gaze to the woman in front of her. In that moment, she knew she made the right choice to trust this alien – no, she’s not just an alien; she is a being that helped her son._

_"He is ill,” she explained, looking back at Alex as he started to stir slowly. “Growth in his brain – making this happened. It hurts him. Doctors say that they don't know when his brain won’t be able cope with the seizures anymore. He’s been having them most of his life and medication isn’t helping. At this point, every day is a miracle." She walked closer and moved her son’s hair gently away from his face and rested her hand there. "I don't know what you did, but thank you." She turned towards the woman and took her hand in her free one and squeezed hard._

_The woman gave her a small smile and squeezed back, "I had a son too…-"_

_“What the hell are you doing?!”_

_Both women’s head’s shot up to the loud voice. Jim Valenti looked at the pair in shock, standing in the still open cell doorway._

_Alex’s mother stood and hastily moved towards Jim._

_“Jim, shh, please calm down,” she begged, grabbing him by the forearms. Jim just looked at her as if she was crazy, but lowered his voice nonetheless._

_“Calm down? What are you and Alex doing in a cell with a prisoner? What happened to Alex?” he asked as he saw the boy rise up to a sitting position, guided gently by the alien. Alex looked tired, but unharmed – the look of confusion on Jim’s face urged Alex’s mother to begin to explain._

_“Jim, look at me-” she pleaded, grabbing his attention towards her face. “Alex had another seizure, a big one. She helped him. I don’t know what would have happen to Alex if she didn’t interfere, but he’s alive, and that’s all that matters, right?” she asked, praying he would understand. Jim shook his head, trying to comprehend what he was hearing._

_“But, how? Why?”_

_“I don’t know, ever since Alex started visiting with me, he’s been fascinated by her and she was always nice to Alex. I think he thought he was making a friend-”_

_“A friend? She’s an alien!” Jim tried to reason._

_“An alien who saved my son’s life,” she responded bluntly, as she turned back to where Alex was now getting his bearings and started to get to his feet. The woman in the cell kept her focus on Alex, in case he would faint. “Please, Jim. No one can know about this! Please.”_

_**_

“I still don’t want to think about what would have happened to you if she didn’t help you that day. I’m not even sure we’d be here talking about it if she hadn’t.” Alex’s mother gazed into the liquid of her second drink that evening. Both Alex and Michael were still processing this information, but Alex’s mother pressed on. “Jim and I were close friends when we were children. He was the one that introduced me to your father. He loved you boys as if you were his own, especially you, Alex.” She grabbed his hand cautiously, ready for him to pull back, but Alex couldn’t find himself to. “He was always fond of you since the day you were born, even more so when we found out you were sick…so, I asked Jim to delete any video evidence of that day and made him promise not to tell anyone.”

“So, wait,” Alex first words in minutes startled both his mother and Michael out of their own thoughts. “She healed me?”

**

_That night, when Alex was getting ready to go to bed, he noticed a strange feeling lingering in his chest. He pulled up his shirt and in the mirror saw an adult-sized handprint faintly glowing on his left peck. Brought his fingers to it and touched it carefully. It didn’t hurt, he noticed. He couldn’t explain the feeling, but it was as if his emotions were scrolling through a rolodex and couldn’t settle on one. But, exhausted from the day, Alex didn’t give the handprint another thought and tried to get some rest._

_In the morning, he remembered dreaming of a beautiful blond woman and a boy. He couldn’t recognize where they were, but he focused on how the woman would make things move around with her mind and the boy would look at the objects in wonderment and laugh with a half-toothy grin. The boy would try and attempt to do the same, but was discouraged when he couldn’t. The woman gave him a reassuring smile and patted his curly hair comfortingly. “You’ll manage one day, I promise.”_

_He would dream about the woman and the boy every night, watching as they laughed and sang together. Alex drowned in the feeling of happiness each time, wishing he would take a little longer to wake up. But once he noticed the handprint faded away, the dreams stopped._

_It was about a week after the incident at Caulfield when Alex’s mother noticed something different about her son. He was waking up happier than usual, humming a familiar song and enjoyed playing outside with his brothers a little bit more. What she noticed most of all, was that Alex hadn’t had one seizure since that day._

_**_

“I booked an appointment with the hospital a few days later, and all your results came back negative – a miracle, the doctor said,” she gave a small laugh, trying to hide an evidence of the sob threatening to come out. “We both knew the truth, though.” 

**

_“Mum?” Alex asked from the back seat as they were making their way back home from the hospital._

_“Yes, Alex?” his mother held the steering wheel tighter. She knew her son, and she knew what he was going to say._

_“Can we go visit the woman again?” he asked in a voice he knew sounded more demanding than a question._

_Eyes kept on the road ahead; she took a deep breath and sighed, “Yes, but I have to check when Mr Valenti is on duty so he could guard the door for us as usual, okay?”_

_“Okay!” Alex answered, clearly pleased with the response._

_The next evening, Alex and his mother made their way to the corridor and greeted Jim Valenti._

_“All cameras are on loop, you have no more than an hour.” He told them sternly. Alex’s mum gripped his cheek and thanked him with a smile. Alex hugged his waist tightly in agreement._

_“Thank you, Mr Valenti,” Alex said looking up at him. Jim lowered until he was face to face with Alex._

_“Anything for you, little man.”_

_As Alex and his mother gently knocked on door N39, the woman inside sat up from her cot and happily ran to the door. Alex’s mother pressed some buttons on the keypad and the door swung open. Alex immediately ran to the open arms of the woman and hugged her as tight as he could, but made sure not to hurt her._

_“How are you?” she asked Alex as she bent down to his height._

_“Good. I feel much better now!-” he began to explain, but was cut off by his mother placing a hand on his shoulder. The woman looked up at her smiling face._

_“Alex isn’t sick anymore. His brain is healthy, as if he never had anything.” She explained. “You did that. You healed my son,” she continued. “Thank you.” Tears were freely falling from her eyes now as the woman looked at Alex once over._

_“You’re very welcome.” she said, holding Alex’s face in her palms. Alex placed a hand over hers and smiled at the woman._

_They all stood like that for a moment, all three remembering that day, when a thought ran through Alex’s mother’s head. She let go of Alex’s shoulders and placed them on the woman’s instead. The woman turned towards her in question. “Before Jim found us that day, you mentioned having a son yourself.”_

_Alex and his mother both noticed the change in the woman’s eyes. Sadness resided there instead. “I did once, yes.”_

_“What happened to him, ma’am?” Alex asked, innocently._

_“Alex-” his mother stopped him, even if her own curiosity got the best of her._

_The woman gave a hint of a smile and turned to Alex’s mother. “It’s okay,” she reassured her, “and you can call me Nora.” She stood up and went to take a seat on her cot. Alex followed and sat down beside her, while his mother grabbed a chair from the corner and sat down too. “He came with me here on Earth, when we crashed, a long time ago. I kept him safe, hidden away from humans until I could find a way for us to get back home,” she began to explain, gazing at the empty wall in front of her. “But after a year, I got caught and was brought here.” A tear slipped silently down her left cheek. Alex’s mother placed her hand on Nora’s comfortingly, knowing how it feels to want to keep your child safe._

_“And your boy?” she asked in a small voice._

_Nora wiped off the tear with her free hand before answering, “I don’t know. It’s been so long ago. I don’t know what happened to him. I’m not even sure if he’s still alive,” she admitted sadly, her voice cracking audibly._

_Alex looked up at Nora. She turned to him and wiped the tears off his face he didn’t realize fell. His mother couldn’t imagine what she was feeling. Any mother would be devastated, no matter what race they may be. “Talk to me about him,” she asked Nora politely, hoping that sparking good memories would give her comfort._

_“Oh,” Nora’s smile widening at the thought of her son. “He was beautiful and smart.”_

_Alex and his mother offered small smiles of encouragement to continue._

_“So smart. I would take him to our special spot and teach him about our world. I would show him how to use his powers. It took him a while, but he never gave up.” Nora was lost in her fond memories when she heard Alex speak._

_“Did-did he have brown, curly hair and golden eyes?”_

_Nora’s eyes grew wide while his mother just looked at her son curiously._

_“H-how did you know?” Nora asked, holding a breath._

_Alex bit his lip and sat up on the cot. He pulled up his shirt and explained, “When you healed me a week ago, I had a handprint on my chest. I don’t know what it meant, but what I do know is that at night I had these dreams about a woman and a boy moving things around with their minds…and I remember the boy had brown, curly hair and really pretty golden eyes.”_

_Nora brought a hand to her face and held in a sob, but she couldn’t hold the tears from her eyes. “Yes,” Nora’s voice barely a whisper, “that’s my boy.” She cried._

_Alex’s mother just sat, stunned at both people in front of her. “But, how did Alex dream about you and your son if he never saw you then?” she asked, trying to understand this information. Nora looked at her and then to her feet._

_“I think when I healed Alex, I left a mark – the handprint.” She explained. “The mark opens up a connection. I think Alex’s dreams and my memories interlocked until the mark faded.”_

_Both Alex and his mother took some time to process, but when Alex was going to speak, Jim knocked on the cell door, signaling them that it was time to leave._

_**_

“After that conversation, you wanted to visit Nora every time Jim was on duty. We did that for a couple of weeks. You just wanted to listen to her talk about her home,” Alex’s mother turned to Michael, “and her son.” Michael and Alex shared a look and found each other’s hand under the table. “But, since Jim’s job as sheriff was taking priority over Project Shepherd and Alex was healthy enough to attend school full-time, he didn’t have much opportunity to visit Nora so frequently anymore. Until one day-

**

_Alex woke up ready for school. He jumped down the stairs and gave his mother a hug as he greeted her in the kitchen. He sat down at the table, waiting for his breakfast, when the newspaper sitting on top of the placemat caught his eyes. He picked it up and looked at the front page headline. He quickly read about three children found abandoned on the desert, but his eyes homed on the picture below it, specifically on one of the boys._

_Alex’s mother was about to put a pancake on Alex’s plate before he jumped up from the chair with excitement. “Alex? What going on?” She asked, spatula frozen in her hand. Alex grabbed the paper and ripped the picture. He moved to his mother and almost hit her in the face as he forced her to look at it._

_“Look,” he said, pointing to the curly haired boy in the picture. “That’s him, that’s Nora’s son!” he expressed. His mother shushed him immediately._

_“Alex, lower your voice, your father hasn’t left for work yet,” she warned. Alex got the hint and continued lowly._

_“Mum, we have to show her this,” he determined. “She needs to know that her son is still alive!” Alex stopped when his mother placed her hands on his shoulders to ground him._

_“Alex, it’s been years since she said she last saw her son. He looks about your age. How could it be him?” she tried to reason with her son._

_“I don’t know, mum. But I’m sure it’s him. I remember him from my dreams. I’m sure of it!” Alex pleaded, almost begging his mother to believe him. She did, deep in her heart she knew her son was right about this. Alex was a wise seven-year old boy and always had gifted emotional intelligence for his age._

_“Okay, okay. But Jim isn’t working at Caulfield today and you have school-” she tried to strategize._

_“I don’t care about school, and we’re not sure when Mr Valenti will be back there again. Mum, please, we can’t wait,” Alex cried in frustration. He pushed her hands away and stood firmly. “She saved my life, mum. We owe her this!” He kept his eyes firm, looking straight into those of his mother’s. She pressed her hand to her eyes and took a deep breath. He’s right, she knows he’s right._

_“Okay, okay. I’ll tell your father that I’ll come in and clean later on today, but after school, alright? I’ll pick you up.”_

_Alex’s face shone with gladness and appreciation and all but launched at his mother, “Thank you.”_

_A few hours later, Alex waited impatiently for his mother to pick him up from school. When she arrived, he threw himself in the back seat and took out the picture and looked at it until they got to Caulfield. He placed it back in his jean’s front pocket securely and made their way in, trying not to attract too much attention._

_It had been weeks since Nora had seen Alex so she was thrilled when the saw the boy at her cell door. He opened it quickly and went inside, followed by his mother. He gave Nora a hug and she kissed his head in return. She looked up at his mother and gave her a smile. “Hi.”_

_“Hello, Nora,” she greeted, “Alex thought you might want to see something.” This caught Nora’s attention and looked down at Alex as he scrambled to take out the picture from his pocket. He enthusiastically pointed the photo to Nora similarly to how he did his mother that morning and she took it._

_“What this?” she began to ask, but her question was short lived as she recognized the children in the photo. Words failed her as her emotions took over. That’s when Alex began to explain._

_“It was on the news this morning, three children were found in the desert. Look, that’s-”_

_“My son,” Nora gasped. “He’s alive.” She stared down at the now tear stained picture in her hand._

_“Nora, may I ask?” Alex’s mother’s voice sounded loud in the now quiet cell. Nora looked up at her. “How are they still so young? You said yourself you crashed here decades ago,” she asked in a kind voice. She only asked because she didn’t want to get both of their hopes up if it was a mistake. Nora understood and nodded._

_“Yes, when we crashed, the children were kept safe in pods that stilled their time. In the pods you remain alive and healthy, but don’t grow or hear anything around you. We couldn’t risk the children getting hurt or found out. I guess we hid them off rather well and they weren’t found by the military for all these years – now, they broke free.” Hope filled her eyes and relief – relief that her son was alive._

_“How did they break free?” Alex’s mother questioned further._

_“I’m not sure,” Nora replied, “but they did, and my boy is alive.” she closed her eyes and raised her head towards the ceiling and sighed. She turned back to Alex. “Thank you, Alex. You always reminded me of him, you know; so smart, so determined, and he liked music too.” She smiled down at him and stroked his cheek. He smiled back, and a new found purpose took over his face. He brought Nora’s hands in his and looked her dead in the eyes._

_“Nora, I promise, one day I’ll find your son and bring him here to meet you. So you can see him again,” Alex proclaimed confidently. His mother sighed softly. She forgets that even though Alex is smart, he is still a child with child-like fantasies and well, innocence. Nora laughed softly and hugged Alex gently._

_“Oh, sweet boy-”_

_“What is the meaning of this!” roared a booming voice from outside the cell. All heads turned to see Jesse Manes, absolutely fuming._

_“Jesse, I can explain-” his wife began, but was harshly pushed aside as he made his way to his son, and the alien who still had her arms around him protectively._

_“I knew it was odd that you wanted to come in to Caulfield so often, but I thought I could trust my wife! I came here to see if you were ready from your work, but instead I find you and my son in a cell, with a prisoner!” his voice calm. Jesse’s rage was eerie. Both his wife and son were used to it by now. He would never start with the physical hurt, but showed dominance in his stance and words._

_“Jesse, listen to me!” his wife pleaded._

_“No, I will hear none of this,” he walked towards his son, gripping prisoner N39 tightly. “I knew letting you bring Alex here was a stupid idea. He’s weak! – just like you,” he continued and took a syringe out of his pocked and violently stabbed it into the alien’s shoulder. Loosening her grip on Alex, Jesse grabbed Alex and pressed him down to the ground – onto his knees. Alex cried out as Jesse pulled out a gun and aimed it towards Nora who lifted her arms defensively, at the ready._

_“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” Jesse said mockingly as he pulled Alex in front of him. “You hurt me, you hurt him.”_

_Nora regretfully lowered her arms, but didn’t look away from Jesse, eyes shining with anger._

_“I just injected you with a serum that will suppress your powers for a week, but until it kicks in, you’re going to do something for me,” Jesse proclaimed._

_“No,” Nora replied firmly. Jesse laughed and pointed the barrel to touch Alex’s head, with the aim to intimidate the alien. It was working._

_“Oh, yes you are.” He retaliated._

_Jesse heard a noise from behind him, but his military training kicked in and his reflexes were faster than those of his wife’s. He turned to her as she made a run to him, and shot her leg before she could get close. A small graze, but large enough to stop her in her charge. Alex flinched at the gunshot and heard his mother whimper from behind him. Jesse turned his gun back to his now trembling son and addressed the alien once again._

_“You’re going to use your powers to wipe away Alex’s memories. ALL OF THEM; No Caulfield, no aliens, no you.” he instructed, pressing the gun firmly at Alex’s head for further suspense._

_Nora nodded through fresh stream of tears and moved closer to Alex. Bending down and looked him in the eyes._

_“No, please don’t,” Alex pleaded through his own. He flinched again when his father shifted him into silence._

_Nora took a hard breath in and silently exhaled. “I’m sorry, Alex. I have to. I won’t let you get hurt,” she spoke in a soothing voice. “It’s going to be okay.”_

_Alex tried to scream and beg, but he was kept still by an external force he couldn’t fight and after a few seconds his world went dark._

_**_

“When you woke back up the next day, your father tried to pick your head about whether or not your remembered anything about aliens. He was glad to know that you didn’t.” she admitted. Alex just stared at his mother in bewilderment. All these years, he knew about everything. Well, _did_ know, rather. His confusion turned into anger the longer he thought about it.

“You knew,” he stated, pain and disappointment hindering his words. He swallowed and tried again. “You knew, and you never told me? All these years!” his voice booming, turning the heads of a few patrons at the café, but he didn’t take any notice, he didn’t care. Michael shared the same expression and waited for the woman’s excuse.

“I know, I know,” she cried, her voice low. “I wanted to tell you, believe me, I did but you know your father. He threatened me every day. He wouldn’t even let me talk to you alone. He was always watching. Sometimes he would ask one of your brothers to ‘keep guard’ while he was at work,” she continued, disgust spilling out with every word. Alex looked down at his now ice-cold coffee. He remembered that time; as a seven-year old boy he always asked himself why his mother wouldn’t spend time with him anymore. He closed his eyes tight at the thought. “After that your father’s temper and tolerance had changed – gotten worse. For years he’d barely speak a word directly to me, unless it was a slur or to remind me not to open my mouth to anyone about his project or what happened to you. Not even with your brothers. It got to me, Alex. I admit it. I started drinking and I spiraled. I knew I had to leave,” she confessed.

Alex couldn’t bring a coherent thought to make up a proper sentence to say. Next to him, Michael sensed his distress and spoke in his name, “And you just left Alex and his brothers with him, after what he did?”

She turned to Michael and nodded her head in guilt, “Yes. I knew that if he found out we left, he’d be pissed and that he would find us eventually…I was afraid that when he did he’d – I couldn’t imagine what he would do. I didn’t want you to get hurt even worse. I wanted to protect you,” she tried to reason. “It was selfish, I know. I should have been there for you. I know you hate me for it, Alex, and I completely understand that.”

Finally, Alex’s brain was working and spat out, “Yeah, I do hate you for it,” he admitted. “You were supposed to be there to protect us,” his voice cracked. Michael firmed his grip in Alex’s hand tighter, giving him strength. “But I get it,” he continued, voice stable again. “You wanted to leave. You didn’t deserve what he put you through, either. But I don’t’ get it, why didn’t you tell me about all this when I got older?” he asked.

“Because after all that happened, I didn’t want you to know. I wanted to keep you out of all of it. I didn’t want you to fall in the same trap your brothers did.” she explained.

“How did you know I wasn’t already?” Alex asked, fairly so.

“Because Jim would have told me,” she answered. “Jim was the only one who knew I was leaving. Before I did, I asked him to keep an eye out for you boys, especially you, Alex. He would make sure you were fed and taken care of. He’d tell me about taking you out on fishing trips when he knew things got hard with your father,” she clarified. “He would send me pictures of you as you grew older,” she glanced towards Michael and gave a small laugh. “When you were about seventeen or so, he sent me a picture he secretly took of the two of you behind the school property.” Michael’s face turned red at the memories of what they would do back there. “When I saw it, I recognized you; the boy from the picture all those years ago. Can’t miss those curls, could you.” she teased. Against his better judgment, Michael laughed. He noticed Alex smile beside him, too. “Anyway, I wanted to know your name and Jim told me.” She grabbed Michael’s hand above the table and turned serious once again, “Your mother loved you, so much,” she emphasized. Michael felt a tear fall down his cheek, but didn’t move. “She would always talk about you with such fondness. You were her world. I am forever grateful to that woman. I owe her Alex’s life. I’m so sorry for what happened.” Michael’s face fell.

“How’d you-” Alex began to ask.

“I used to work there for quite a while, Alex. I still had some friends in the grapevine.”

They remained there at the café for a bit longer, chatting about Alex’s time in the force and what his mother was up to in her new life. They didn’t realize the café was getting ready to close until a waiter brought their attention. They all walked out of the café and headed towards the car park. Before parting ways, Alex’s mother once again tried for a hug, which was, this time, received. It wasn’t the gripping hug she remembers Alex used to give her, but it was something.

“Thank you for asking to see me, Alex. I know it must have been difficult,” she said as they parted.

“Yeah, you too.”

“You’re always welcome to visit me okay. I know you may not ever want to again, but you’re always welcome here.”

Alex wasn’t sure how to reply, so he gave her a simple nod instead. Michael moved closer and held Alex’s hand as they started to part ways.

“Michael,” they heard her say before getting in the truck. They turned to the woman. “Keep him safe for me, okay?”

Michael gave her his dashing smile and answered loudly, “Always.”

She nodded and with one last look at her son, she turned to her own vehicle and drove off.

**

They’d been driving for about an hour silently, similarly to how they arrived. Alex wasn’t nervous anymore, but going over what he just learned about his past for the past hour made his head turn and heart beat faster.

“Michael, pull over please.”

Michael did just that with no question, he pulled up at an empty side of the road and followed Alex as he made his way to the tailgate, pulled it down and sat on the truck bed.

“I’m sorry, I just needed some air,” he told Michael.

“That’s okay, take all the time you need,” Michael reassured him as he sat next to Alex and grabbed the blanket he leaves there and wrapped it around them. After a few minutes of gazing at the stars, Michael looked over to see silent tears making their way down Alex’s face.

“Hey, hey what’s the matter?” he asked worriedly, holding Alex tighter in his arms. It took Alex a moment to answer.

“I always seem to keep hurting you don’t I?” Alex asked as more tears fell.

Michael’s brows furrowed, “What do you mean?”

Alex moved his body so that he was looking at Michael directly in his eyes. “When I was looking at you mother’s old Caulfield files, I noticed that your family were selected at random for testing, but there was a time where it logged your mother being tested on almost every day. I realize that it was probably after what happened with me. My father was pissed at her, so he wanted to make her pay.” Alex tried his best to hold back a sob. “Because of me, your mother was put through more suffering by the hands of my father,” he said. “If I had kept myself out of her life, she wouldn’t have had to go through that. I made her time at Caulfield more excruciating,” he choked out, unable to hold back the sobs building in his throat.

Michael pulled Alex towards him and held him as close as he could. He lifted his hands to Alex’s head and gently tugged on his hair in comfort. “No, no Alex. Listen to me. You did nothing wrong. You were a _child_. You were _innocent_. You hear me? You did _nothing_.” He pulled Alex’s head so that he could make eye contact again. Alex looked at him, red eyes straining to keep open. “It wasn’t your fault, okay?” Alex swallowed and nodded, placing his face back down to the crook of Michael’s neck. He let him rest there for a while until he was sure Alex calmed. “From what I heard, she seemed to have enjoyed your company. You made that short time special for her. Your father was a sick bastard. I’m sure he would have his test on my mother more and more intense by time either way.” After a few seconds, Michael laughed. Alex looked up at him.

“What?”

“I can’t believe that you actually kept that promise you made to my mother,” he said through his smile. Alex just stared at him. “You found me and you took me to visit her. She got to see me again.”

Alex scoffed, stray tear hitting his cheek, “Heh, look how that turned out.” Michael pressed a kiss to Alex’s forehead and squeezed him tightly. “And hey,” he continued, “At least I know she would have liked you as my boyfriend.” That made Alex let out a small laugh and hid a smile in Michael’s chest.

After a few more minutes of warm cuddling, Alex and Michael went back to the front seats and continued their way back home.

**

Michael followed Alex to the door and kissed him before turning to leave. Alex grabbed his arm to stop him.

“Hey, you can stay if you want?”

Michael did want, but he thought that maybe Alex needed some time alone to process the day. “Are you sure?”

“You’ve been driving for hours, and it’s way past midnight. Stay, please.” Alex begged with his eyes. Michael only said no to those eyes once before, and he swore he’d never do that again.

“Okay,” he smiled.

They made their way to the bedroom and got ready for the night. Michael helped Alex take off his prosthetic and massaged the area for a little while, knowing it must be aching Alex from wearing it all day. Alex savored the feeling and pulled Michael towards him until he was lying between his thighs. Michael took the invitation and kissed Alex tenderly. They continued like that for a few more minutes. The kisses remained soft, but grew in intensity by time. Both knowing what this will lead to, Michael stripped both him and Alex of their boxers and took his place between Alex again. He went back to kiss Alex, but was stopped by a gentle hand on his chest. Michael moved back slightly in question.

“Can I ask you something?” Alex asked nervously.

“Of course, anything,” Michael reassured.

Alex bit his lower lip and brought Michael’s eyes to his, “Can you mark me?” Michael was taken aback by that, but placed his right hand to Alex’s chest nonetheless, right where his mother had long ago.

“Are you sure?” he asked. They’d never done this before. He wasn’t even sure how, but he did know after Max told him about his and Liz’s experience, that he’d wanted it someday – with Alex.

“Yes. I want to be connected to you, Michael, as much as I can,” he held his gaze, “Please.”

Michael closed his eyes and nodded. He moved up to press their foreheads together and focused on Alex’s heartbeat beneath his palm. He focused on them, bringing their memories together to the front of his mind; the good, and the bad – all of it. He let out a gasp as he felt the connection interlocking itself between the two souls. He knew Alex could feel it too. He felt his palm begin to heat up, but all he could think about was Alex and their love for each other. He leaned back down and brought Alex’s lips back to his and they locked themselves like that for what felt like ages. The connection between them fully secured, Alex and Michael spent the rest of the night filled with feelings of love, hope, cosmic orgasms and promises of a better future together.

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you liked it!


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